Flying High 2.0

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Flying High: High Expectations, Great Motivations, and Genuine Student InterestsIn this piece I attempt to argue the destructive nature of labels, however benevolent the intentionsof educators or claims of previous research studies contend. Any evident separation of studentsinto categories, regardless of their euphemistic sounding titles, is destructive and lays the tracksfor a lifelong struggle with worth, self-esteem, and personal intellectual value. Individualizedlearning may be employed to some degree for struggling students though within the classroomon the whole, no obvious differential treatment should be made, but rather a level playing fieldshould be available to all students. Therefore, the educator will use the following strategiesevenly and across the board to encourage student engagement, rather than facilitate thought.Consequently, so called “low” performing students will be immersed in the process as would anyother student in order to develop new and exciting ways of thinking and learning. In support ofthis theory I cite personal experience, and look to seven papers summarized by the Mid-Continent Research for Education and Learning International (http://www.mcrel.org/), to discussraising the achievement of low-performing students, which site : (1) weak or inappropriatecurricula; (2) ineffective instruction; (3) disengaging classroom discourse; (4) poor student self-concept; (5) unsuccessful adjustment to school culture; and (6) prejudice. Among the ways toimprove student achievement are: Provide all students with rigorous curriculum; help teachersimprove instruction; provide support to students; create more manageable classes and school units; increase parent involvement; identify and fix the ways low performance is manufactured; and establish strong, yet fair, accountability. If we are to address so called “low” performing students, we must first make a thorough examination of the underpinnings of the phenomenon. It has been suggested that schools can create negative performance issues in schools. (Haycock 1998) According to Haycock, lowstudent performance becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy thorough the lowered expectations ofeducators themselves. (Haycock, 1998) For example, people of color and immigrant children 2

tend to be clustered in lower-performing schools where lowered expectations manifest in lessrigorous curriculum. A vicious cycle. Immigrant students are often double punished astraditionally, US schools “lump” all students together, regardless of educational background.Better methodology would offer a preparatory year in English with core subjects in nativetongues making for a smoother and more productive transition.Low performance schools are now the learning grounds for novice and inexperienced teachers.The hope being of a later transition by teachers into a higher ranked school once equipped withthe necessary experience. This not only perpetuates myths stereotyping schools indisproportionately immigrant and minority areas, but also offers-up less experienced teachers tostudents most in need of a more rigorous curriculum.That’s not to say top performing schools do not exist in minority and immigrant areas. What’sdifferent is the overall approach to education. The most favorable being accountability. Studiesshow, top performing schools in these areas have a higher degree of accountability, not just intest scores but also, and importantly, tracking the individual advancement or each of its students.(https://www.jstor.org/stable/3326150?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents)While nearly impossible for teachers to truly establish an optimal level of performance for eachindividual in her class, the opportunity to develop rigorous curriculum across the board stillexists.Rigor — Rigor has gotten a lot of negative presslately. No teacher strives to make learning difficult fortheir students. What is needed is a metacognitive styleallowing students to expand upon traditional modes ofthinking, think critically, and develop a system ofreflection and inquiry. There are no silver bullets ormiracles, but none are really needed.Teach students the difference between recall, curriculumapplication, and strategic reasoning. When students learn the difference between how muchthinking is required to answer questions at each level, it assists them in not only answering 3

questions, but also in their learning. This strategy paired with the above mentioned increasingrigor in instruction and assignments is a powerful combination.Metacognition: Teach Students How to Learn — Many educators are still telling students“what is what”! Feeding or rewarding student answers or helping students to choose answersfrom a text is so last century! Modern educators should see the value in helping students todivine information through analysis and interpretation in order to see what thoughts andstrategies have been employed to get ideas out into the world. The path to thought, or to ananswer is important, not only the destination. This allows not only for the evaluation ofmaterials, but importantly, once students see how intellect is developed and shared, regardless ofmedium, then they too have become creators of knowledgerather than passive observers finding answers on a test. Inturn this develops a hunger to learn, an appetite forknowledge as they themselves occupy the position ofinformation generator, they are no longer suppliant to othersfor direction, but work in congress with peers to produceage-appropriate bodies of knowledge, which in turn fosterspride of accomplishment, and independence from theteacher. This process must start from the off! Students mustsee not be shown or told.Students are often taught what to learn. In order for them to be successful as learners, as thinkers,they also have to discover how to learn and acquire an appetite for learning. I’m convinced thatone of the reasons some students do not succeed in college is that they sail through high schoollearning a prescribed curriculum, but never learn how to learn.Students, at an early age must realize how to:• self-regulate their learning• set their own academic goals• develop strategies to meet their goals• reflect on their academic performance 4

Set High Expectations — High expectations become the catalyst for learning, and importantly,show that educators hold students in high regard as a serious thinker, with the potential tosucceed. Young people have strong reactions to the way they are perceived by their caretakers;parental, educational, or otherwise. These perceptions of self, set the stage for attitudescontributing to, or distracting from the educational process. Teachers have an enormousresponsibility to help craft learner’s self- perception in positive, fulfilling ways. Teachingcurriculum is only a portion of what educators really do. Building high self-esteem contributes tostudent success in immeasurable ways, setting the stage for lifelong learning and success.Up, Up, and away…Teachers who never stop learning are essentially students themselves. Whatbetter ways might teachers connect with their students than if theyare one and the same? More importantly teachers who are alwaysleaning avoid calcification, while always updating their bank ofknowledge. Teachers as learners allows for constant and re-evaluation of their own thought and thought processes. If you strivefor knowledge students will emulate. Onward and upward!The more an instructor invests themselves in learning, the lesslikely they will become overly reliant on the standard curriculum,and all the more available they will be to new ideas, and neweducational philosophies. Today, there are a number of convenientways for teachers to stay switched-on outside traditional professional development. Free onlineuniversity courses, teacher blogs, teacher professional-development communities, joiningprofessional learning networks, or creating their own. Teachers, administrators and district headsshould always keep an ear to the pavement in order to keep abreast of the latest developments ineducation as well as conducting their own research into the latest educational strategies. Aswitched-on teacher will better motivate students and independent thinking.In my classes, when asked by students for answers (which is common in our traditionallyteacher-centered environment) I playfully answer” I don’t know” this usually gets a laugh, butmore importantly, shows students that they are expected to source information at a much deeperlevel than they might have ever done in the past. They must become self-reliant as well as reflectupon the material in ways that have not occurred to them in the past, and that they will be 5

expected to push themselves intellectually and will never spoon-fed in my class. Like everythingin life there are limits. I push my students, but in respectful and culturally appropriate ways. Ibegin by showing students that I truly have their best interests (and their education) at heart. Thatbecomes a jumping off point allowing me to delve more deeply into topics than simply barkingout instruction which is at best, confrontational. I work with my students with a recipe of one-part compassion, one-part persuasion, mutual respect, and a large dose of common sense. Ihonestly believe my students know that I care for them, and this becomes the catalyst for ourwork and time together.That’s Entertainment... Fun-filled, frivolity minded,teachers set a classroom tone which while serious ispleasurable. Bored students shut-down and are less-likely to get the most of any experience. Moreover,teachers with good attitudes, not only spread cheer, butalso show students that they are really there for them,present and engaged, excited by what they do. This inturn sends a signal to students that their education isimportant to the teacher. These mindsets are infectious,and articulated or not, students get bitten!School community. Each and every school is a microcosm of society, a world unto itself! WhenI worked, albeit briefly, at Lowell Middle School in West Oakland California, many teachersdidn’t even know the names of colleges. So, disjointed and negative was the environment that itbecame nearly impossible to get students engaged. Theschool was more about punitive measures theneducation. These realities, while serious and not easy tochange by any means, can be addressed throughcommunity building. Starting with respect foreducators, and peer to peer engagement. Communitycan be built brick by brick, relationship by relationship, 6

support of colleagues, team building exercises and school-wide engagement.(http://www.cmcss.net/documents/pdf/100gradcntract.pdf)Conditions for a strong school communityCondition 1: The school has a core instructional program with qualified teachers, a challengingcurriculum, and high standards and expectations for students.Condition 2: Students are motivated and engaged in learning — both in school and in communitysettings, during and after school.Condition 3: The basic physical, mental and emotional health needs of young people and theirfamilies are recognized and addressed.Condition 4: There is mutual respect and effective collaboration among parents, families andschool staff.Condition 5: Community engagement, together with school efforts, promote a school climate thatis safe, supportive and respectful and that connects students to a broader learning community(Berg, Melaville, & Shah, 2003, p. 23).Family-school partnerships and community engagement are at the heart of these conditions.Setting the tone: Build effective classroom management strategies. This will allow you the timeto give students your best! • Prepare yourself before the school year starts. • Know what you want students to learn. • Plan and follow a timeline for teaching while allowing for flexibility. • Know in advance what your school policies are and the support you can expect. • Be prepared—and willing—to ask for support. • Have a record-keeping system prepared for attendance, grades, and behavior. • Remind yourself every morning that you are in charge of your classroom. • Accept the responsibility for being in charge. • Accept the responsibility for teaching your students. • Believe in yourself and believe in what you teach. • Class rules should not be complicated—keep them simple for your students. • Be consistent and fair with your rules. 7

• Make a printed list of the rules and give each student two copies; have one copy signed by the student and the other by a parent. • Ensure that any substitute teacher knows and enforces your rules. • Have students raise their hands to answer or ask questions. • Expect your students to be on time—punctuality is a trait that, as you know, will serve them well in college, the workforce, and beyond. • Don’t yell, and don’t allow students to yell at either. • Do not tolerate bullying. • Altercations will lead immediate action. • If your classroom becomes out of control, take names and take action with your principal or the parents. • Create a system that provides credit for good behavior. • Establish an organized system for bathroom breaks.From everything I have read this week about low and underperforming students, theoverwhelming body of evidence indicates that aside from small group and peer learning, and thepossibility of some one on one tutoring, separation of underperforming students has negativeimpacts of self-esteem, sense of self and is destructive to the overall educational experience.Students immersed in challenging materials, constantly challenged to think creatively andcritically, held to high standards and accountable for productive positive, challenging, and lifeaffirming work, fare far better than do students separated from peers and isolated in non-challenging and often demeaning educational environs. Therefore, it is clear students must beimmersed in challenging educational environments, where positive educators set the tone forsuccess, support and encourage students to work collaboratively in a wholistic caring communityof educators in a whole-school open community with parental and community involvement.Given the respect and encouragement needed, special needs notwithstanding, all students canthrive in intensive educational environments.In my classes, high expectations are a given. High expectations are facilitated through the abovementioned philosophical interplays with students. 8

References:“6 Keys to Community Engagement in Schools.” Sustaining Community, 15 Mar. 2017,sustainingcommunity.wordpress.com/2014/05/13/6-kyes/.“A New Definition of Rigor.” Edutopia, www.edutopia.org/blog/a-new-definition-of-rigor-brian-sztabnik.Charles T. Clotfelter, Helen F. Ladd, Jacob L. Vigdor and Roger Aliaga DiazJournal of Policy Analysis and Management. Vol. 23, No. 2 (Spring, 2004), pp. 251-271“Http://Ljournal.ru/Wp-Content/Uploads/2017/03/a-2017-023.Pdf.” 2017, doi:10.18411/a-2017-023.“McLeod Gaming.” McLeod Gaming, www.mcleodgaming.com/.“What Community Engagement in Education Looks Like . . . and Can Do.” Edutopia,www.edutopia.org/blog/what-community-engagement-education-looks-and-can-do-anne-obrien.Web sources:http://oecdeducationtoday.blogspot.com/2016/02/are-we-failing-our-failing-studenyshttp://www.cmcss.net/documents/pdf/100gradcntract.pdffile:///C:/Users/pauli/Downloads/796-4766-1-PB.pdfhttps://www.edutopia.org/blog/a-new-definition-of-rigor-brian-sztabnikhttps://www.weareteachers.comhttps://education.cu-portland.edu/blog/classroom-resources/classroom-management-strategies-for-high-school-teachers/ 9

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